Dead Songs in Depth

    
When Push Comes To Shove
w: Hunter m: Garcia
AGDL: http://arts.ucsc.edu/gdead/agdl/push.html
LASF: http://www.whitegum.com/songfile/WHENPUSH.HTM
  

    
When Push Comes To Shove 
Lyrics: Robert Hunter
Music: Jerry Garcia

Copyright Ice Nine Publishing; used by permission.

Shaking in the forest, what have you to fear
Here there may be tigers to punch you in the ear
Gloves of stainless steel, bats carved out of brick
Will knock you down and push you up and give your ass a kick
When push comes to shove
You're afraid of love

Shaking in the desert, wherefore do you cry
Here there may be rattle snakes to punch you in the eye
Shotguns full of silver, bullets made of glass
String barbed wire at your feet and do not let you pass
When push comes to shove
You're afraid of love

Chorus
When push comes to shove
When push comes to shove
You're afraid of love
When push comes to shove

Shaking in the bedroom, covers on your head
Cringing like a baby at the hand beneath the bed
Phantom in the closet, scratching at the door
The latest mystery killer that you saw on channel four
When push comes to shove
You're afraid of love

Shaking in the garden, the fear within you grows
Here there may be roses to punch you in the nose
Twist their arms around you, slap you till you cry
Wrap you in their sweet perfume and love you till I die
When push comes to shove
You're afraid of love

[chorus]
  

    


Stephen Bertoni writes:





I was browsing the lyrics on the web pages. I was particularly
interested in "When Push Comes to Shove", since I've always enjoyed
that lyric and the "Here there may be" lines intrigued me.
Anyway, I noticed the entire first verse of the song is missing. At
least the first verse in the version from "In the Dark". Maybe the
lyrics reflect the live version? I never heard it at a show, and I
can't recall it from any show I have in my collection. I saw that
editing of the web pages has been suspended for a few months now. But
I thought you might want to add the first verse to the collection.
Here it is:

Shaking in the forest, what have you to fear?
Here there may be tigers to punch you in the ear.
Buzzards made of steel, bats carved out of brick.
They knock you down and beat you up and give your ass a kick.

I also wanted to mention how much I enjoy "The Annotated Grateful Dead
Lyrics". Such fun to read! Thanks.

Take care,

Steve
  

    

Steve - are you referring to the AGDL page?  'Cause we have the first verse
here in the topic...
  

    
AGDL has it too, with two annotations.
  

    
Here's my blog post on dead.net about the song, in the "Greatest
Stories Ever Told" feature space:
http://www.dead.net/features/greatest-stories-ever-told/greatest-stories-ever-
told-when-push-comes-shove

Please feel free to login and comment on the dead.net site!
  

    
OMG, the "Push" from "Complete Studios Rarities Collection" is for
the ages.  It's the garage version of the tune.  It sounds like the
Dead covering MC5 covering the Dead.  I just listened to it for the
first time and replayed it two times! 

SO

MUCH

FUN!

Play it loud.
  

    
I know I have that set around here somewhere...
  

    
Here it is on Spotify:

https://open.spotify.com/track/5vDIG1RKiPolyd2e1ox5vc